THE HEAT OF THE BATTLE…Kevin Cassidy competes for the ball against Naomh Conaill

GAELIC life columnist Kevin Cassidy has spoken of the hurt and pain that goes hand-in-hand with being a player.

Speaking in the aftermath of Gaoth Dobhair’s loss to Naomh Conaill, Cassidy said that the defeat was the toughest night of his career.

“At 5am on Saturday night my wife Sarah came down the stairs to find me watching the game and rewinding back on our mistakes. I couldn’t sleep and the only thing that seemed to ease the pain was when I’d identify something in the game that we could improve on.”

The full column is in today’s Gaelic Life, available in store or online here.